Monday, October 30, 2017

Fidget Spinner Cozy Pattern

I've been meaning to post this for a while. I wrote this up in May, I think, and then set it aside and forgot about it. Oops.


(I know many of my readers aren't knitters. If you want one of these but don't have the means to make it yourself, I am selling them out of my Etsy shop, Zizi Rho Designs.)

Initially, the idea was to repurpose my "knitted pouches" (which is a repurpose from a cell phone cozy that you can clip on something--long story how they came about in the first place). If the fidget spinners fit inside, that's what I'd call the pouches from now on.

But once I had that thought, I kept going. I could knit something the same size as the fidget spinner. It would need to be a triangle. but if I did that, then I could keep it open at the center so one could still spin it while it was in the fabric. This would make it a cozy...


How to construct? I could start from the center, knit one side, then knit the other. That way, both sides look exactly the same. Balanced.

So, plan in place, I set about knitting one. I used a temporary cast on. Knit a few rounds. Bound off. Unraveled the temporary cast on and repeated for the other side. Easy enough.

But I didn't like how the finished object looked. There was an extra half row that made the garter ridges look wrong.

A couple more tries with a couple more tweaks...

And I discovered that I was making the whole thing much more complicated than I needed to.

I guess I've been knitting for too long. I know several ways to accomplish a goal. I was using every trick I know when simpler is actually best in this case.


Right. So that's the story. Here's the pattern.

Materials:
  • About 0.15 oz of worsted weight yarn
  • Set of 4 size 8 (5.0 mm) double pointed needles
  • Stitch markers
Gauge: About 15 sts/4 inches over garter stitch while slightly stretched.

This is made to fit the triangular shaped fidget spinner that's about 3 inches (7.6 cm) along each side. If you have a different style to cover, adjust the pattern accordingly.

Notes:
  • This pattern is written to be knitted on 3 double pointed needles. If using a different circular method, mark each "needle" with stitch markers and proceed accordingly. 
  • The increases are done by doing a yarn over (yo) on the round, and then on the following round working those yarn overs through the back loop (TBL)

Using Old Norwegian Cast On, cast on 21 stitches.
Arrange these stitches over 3 needles, 7 stitches per needle (or mark off 7 stitches).
Join to work in rounds.
Follow the chart, working each needle as indicated:

Round
Needle 1
Needle 2
Needle 3
1
K1, yo, k6, yo
P1, yo, p6, yo
K1, yo, k6, yo
2
P1, p1 TBL, p6, p1 TBL
K1, k1 TBL, k6, k1 TBL
P1, p1 TBL, p6, p1 TBL
3
K1, yo, k8, yo
P1, yo, p8, yo
K1, yo, k8, yo
4
P1, p1 TBL, p8, p1 TBL
K1, k1 TBL, k8, k1 TBL
P1, p1 TBL, p8, p1 TBL
5
K11
P11
K11
6
P11
K11
P11
7
Ssk, k7, k2tog
P2tog, p7, p2tog
Ssk, k7, k2tog
8
P9
K9
P9
9
Ssk, k5, k2tog
P2tog, p5, p2tog
Ssk, k5, k2tog
10
P7 (bind off)
K7 (bind off)
P7 (bind off)

Round 10 is the bind off round. Use the Simple Stretchy Bind Off.


Wind in ends, and put it on your fidget spinner.

I'd love to see your finished projects. Upload to Ravelry. Tag me on Instagram or Twitter (I'm @ZiziRho).

17 comments:

  1. Oh, complicating simple tasks is my specialty. ~grin~ I'm so glad you worked it out.

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  2. You just might have a best seller there.

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  3. I'm going to have to practice that Old Norwegian Cast On, thank you for the video link :D

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    Replies
    1. It's a bit tricky until you get the hang of it. But it's perfect for those times when the cast on edge really needs to stretch, like on hats. It's much stretchier than the long-tailed cast on.

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  4. I still have never seen a fidget spinner in real life but I like how you sort of worked backward in order to 'invent' your own pattern. That's pretty cool, and the kind of thinking that really engages your brain!

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    Replies
    1. You're not missing much. I don't see them around much any more. I think the schools banned them, so they've gone underground.

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  5. I love how you Created something fun for this fad. I like the multi coloured one

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  6. You have quite a colorful collection of them!

    betty

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  7. They look really good! Personally never felt the need to own a fidget spinner though. haha

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  8. Sounds really complex to this non-knitter. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

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  9. I'm not going to lie. I knit, but I would still probably buy one if I had a spinner because I'm pretty lazy when it comes to more complex patterns. LOL I like my mindless knitting. It relaxes me.

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    Replies
    1. This pattern is so not complex. Cast on. Garter stitch. Increase. Decrease. Bind off. I can get one finished in less than an hour.

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